Introduction
The five books of the Psalms
The Psalms come from the collections of songs used in the Temple of
Jerusalem. Although tradition has it that David regulated the liturgy just
as he composed all the psalms, it is more likely that the Levites 每 the
※Sons of Asaph and Yedutun§ 每 who were in charge of the sacred music of the
Temple, had a greater role in the writing and selection of the psalms. With
the passage of time, the psalms took on an overlay of personal piety,
collective lamentations and the expressions of another era.
As the prayer book of ancient Israel, the psalms fed Jewish piety as they
did the prayer of Jesus. To this day, they form the foundation of Christian
liturgical prayer used by countless religious, priests and deacons as well
as an increasing number of laity.
Not all Christians may find in the psalms the fulfillment of their own
aspirations, but adapting them for prayer, or better still, allowing them to
educate and form one＊s spiritual life may prove to be more valuable. If we
are to enter into a conversation with God, we would benefit more by
listening to Him and meditating his inspired words than by speaking of our
own worries.
The Psalms have come through the ages as a powerful means of prayer. If they
do not always satisfy our own sense of prayer, it is not necessarily a bad
thing. If they manage to unbalance even slightly our ingrained habits of
piety, that is not a small gift. These psalms may be capable of renewing our
language and symbolism in a world where God is often a stranger and people
would prefer to be left alone, to pursue their own interests.
The Psalms have been collected into five books as one can see from the
endings of each book (cf Ps 41, 72, 106). Within different collections one
sometimes finds nearly identical Psalms and we can consider them as pairs.
The numbering of the psalms is slightly different in the Hebrew and Greek
editions. We have used the Hebrew numbering and placed the Greek number in
parenthesis 每 the one most often used in our Latin Liturgy.
The Songs in the Bible
Together with the psalms we should also indicate other prayers which we find
in most parts of the Bible and which we usually call ※canticles§:
每 of Moses: Ex 15
每 2nd of Moses: Dt 32
每 of Anna: 1 S 2
每 of Isaiah: Is 12
每 of Hezekiah: Is 38
每 of Habakkuk: Hb 3
每 of the three servants: Dn 3:52
每 of Tobit: Tb 13
每 of Sirach: Sir 36
每 of Mary: Lk 1:46
每 of Zechariah: Lk 1:68
每 of Simeon: Lk 2:29
每 Ephesians: 1:3-14; 3:14-20
每 Revelation: several passages
每 See also 2 S 23; Ne 9:6; Is 26:7; 59; 63:7; Jer 20:7; Jdt 16:13; Wis 9:1;
Sir 23:1; 51.